SD Prep Sports

SD Prep Sports: Track & Field

Metro Conference midseason report

Three's a crowd in Mesa League

By Phillip Brents

Posted April 17, 2003

When Eastlake moved up to Mesa League track & field competition this spring, the already top-heavy league became even stronger. Resident girls power Chula Vista has already discovered that in the race for this year’s dual meet title, leaving high profile meets between Bonita Vista and Sweetwater and Bonita Vista and Eastlake likely to determine the final balance of power.

Bonita Vista defeated Chula Vista 71-56 on April 3 to hand the defending Mesa League girls champions a key setback. The Barons (2-0 in league) sped past Montgomery 103-24 the following week to set up pivotal season-ending encounters at Sweetwater April 24 and at Eastlake May 8 to size up which team ultimately hoists this year’s league banner.

Bonita Vista has already set the pace after winning the Division I team title at last month’s Sweetwater Relays.

“Eastlake is very talented. We have them at the end. For that to mean anything, we have to beat Sweetwater and Sweetwater has some talented runners. If we get to Eastlake undefeated, it’s going to be a very meaningful meet,” said Bonita Vista girls coach Ian Cumming.

Defending boys champion Sweetwater turned back an early challenge from Eastlake by defeating the host Titans 76-60 on April 3 while Bonita Vista has beaten Chula Vista (88-39) and Montgomery (104-21) in successive meets to take a likewise 2-0 league mark into the showcase meet against the Devils. The prime time meet is scheduled to start at 5:15 p.m. with field events while running events are set for a 6 p.m. start.

The Metro Conference’s individual talent load appears to be skewed toward the Mesa League this year.

The Bonita Vista girls team returns two individual defending Mesa League champions in Kristen Gonzalez (1600 meters) and Allison Kwan (triple jump). The Barons also return two runners from last year’s league champion 4x100 relay team: Kayleigh Knudson and Breanna Kelley.

Gonzalez, who has accepted a scholarship offer to attend Loyola Marymount University, won the invitational 1500-meter run at last Saturday’s Titan Track Fest at Poway High School, finishing with a 4:54.03 time that had Cumming bubbling over with optimism. The 1500 time would convert to a 5:14 mile — well ahead of her best time of 5:19 in the event.

Following Gonzalez’ lead in the distances this spring are Montgomery’s Yenissa Kaeg (5:27) and BV teammate Tiffany Caddell (5:30.99). Caddell, just a sophomore, has posted the Metro’s top recorded electronic time in the 3200. She was second in last year’s league 3200 finals as a freshman.

Knudson was second in both the 100 and 300 hurdles at last year’s league finals and has posted times of 49.8 in the 300 distance and 16.82 in the 100 distance this season to challenge teammate Maggie Torres’ conference-leading 16.27 electronic time in the 100 hurdles. Torres’ strength is in the shorter distance.

Likewise, Kwan has been challenged by teammate Melanie Hannibal. Hannibal recorded a third-best long jump of 16-6.25 at the Poway meet to lead Kwan (16-4.75), Castle Park’s Shante Rodgers (15-10) and CV’s Jackie Mandy (15-8) among reported scores.

In the triple jump, Hannibal (34-0.25) ranks ahead of Eastlake’s Esha McDowell (33-7) with Kwan (33-0.25), CV’s Johanna Suasa (33-0) and Southwest’s Nyadak Lok (32-8) right behind.
Sophomore Crystal Shields is another budding standout for the Barons after tying for the top mark of 5-2 in the high jump at last Saturday’s Poway track festival.

The coed team title at the Sweetwater Relays was simply the latest in an ongoing series at the event. Cumming attributed the Barons’ success to the program’s overall balance. “Our team balance is a good balance between the girls and the guys. We might have a stronger girls or a stronger guys team in any one particular year but we seem to be very strong every year overall,” he said.
Bonita Vista’s honor roll of returning boys league champions includes Ryan Becijos (mile), Nick Amalfitano (880) and Russ Foster (shot put) .

Foster just missed making the top three cut to qualify for last year’s state championships, finishing fourth in the San Diego Section Masters meet. Foster has excelled to start this season. He broke his own school record with a put of 56-11 to win last Saturday’s Poway meet after setting a new school record two weeks earlier.

Becijos and Amalfitano join Anthony Garvey as returning legs on the Barons’ defending league champion mile relay unit. Becijos finished behind Mar Vista’s Troy Swier and Sweetwater’s Edgar Llanez at last fall’s Metro cross country finals. Llanez, who finished second in both the mile and two-mile events at last spring’s Mesa League track finals, served notice he intends to once again contend after winning the Poway Track Fest invitational 1500 in 4:05.94. Becijos (4:10.06) was fourth in the same field.

Other top returners who rate to fill the power vacuum include Bonita Vista’s Branden Brooks and Justin Hillery. Brooks finished undefeated in the 100 in duals last year before finishing third in the league championship meet behind winner Tony Crenshaw of Southwest and runner-up Adrian Trujillo of Montgomery. Hillery has strode to the forefront this season by pacing conference hurdlers in both distances, ranking third in the section in the 300 (39.70).

The Barons are also bolstered by junior transfer Joe Gaines, who finished second in last year’s South Bay League 400 finals for Marian Catholic. He has already clocked 50.9 to lead off the mile relay this season (his time was 51.95 at last year’s league meet) and won his race in the open 400 at this year’s Mt. Carmel Invitational.

Supporting Foster in the boys shot put this season are BV teammates Marcus Martin (also a fine triple-jumper) and Eddie Martinez, who has received a full academic scholarship to attend Stanford next fall.

Metro notepad
•Montgomery’s Kenyatta Williams won last year’s league long jump title but has been sidelined thus far with a football injury, though the Aztec coaching staff indicated he may return before the season is over. If Williams is unable to make it back to championship form, Sweetwater’s Jordan Rosure appears ready in the wings to fill the void. Rosure finished fourth in the triple jump at last year’s San Diego Masters championship meet to just miss the top three cut for state.

•Another returner looking to move up this season is Eastlake junior Solie Gonzales, who finished fourth in the girls shot put at last year’s Masters meet. She is contending again for a trip to the state meet by ranking fourth in the section with a put of 38-3 at midseason.

Returning Mesa League boys champions include Chula Vista’s Julian Smith ( high jump) and Sweetwater’s Joe Wynn (440) and Alfonso Hernandez (300 hurdles).

Chula Vista’s girls are led by returning 200 and 400 dash champion Jackie Mandy and returning 100 meter champion Marla Mason . The Spartans also won last year’s mile relay.

Mason leads the conference with best fully electronic times in the 100 dash, though Eastlake's Brittany Lejia has clocked a 12.4 hand time in the event.

Mandy tops conference runners with a 26.20 time in the 200, followed by Mason at 26.91.

In field events, Eastlake’s Shannon Young topped conference discus throwers at 118-3 while Titan teammates Marina Pastrana (9-6) and Megan Wilkinson (9-0) led local pole vaulters. Youung and Wilkinson both won South Bay League titles in their specialty events last year.

Eastlake’s Don Bonahoom had the second-best discus throw at the Poway Track Fest at 150-0. He ranks fourth in the section at 165-6.

Metro Conference Boys Top Marks
(Through April 6)
Running Events

(electronic times)
100: Craig Jackson (Eastlake) 10.9; D’Undre Byrd (Eastlake) 11.0
400: Joe Gaines (Bonita Vista) 50.92; Joe Wynn (Sweetwater) 51.40
800: Javier Diaz (Sweetwater) 2:02.72; Troy Swier (Mar Vista) 2:03.0
1500: Troy Swier (Mar Vista) 4:02.11
1600: Troy Swier (Mar Vista) 4:17.92; Ryan Becijos (Bonita Vista) 4:19.05
3200: Ivan Villareal (Chula Vista) 10:05.51
110HH: Justin Hillery (Bonita Vista) 15.39; Daniel Chang (Bonita Vista) 15.76; Julio Torres (Chula Vista) 15.96
300IH: Justin Hillery (Bonita Vista) 39.70; Alfonso Hernandez (Sweetwater) 41.45; Daniel Chang (Bonita Vista) 41.67
4x100 relay: Bonita Vista 44.11
4x400 relay: Bonita Vista 3:28.38

Field Events
High jump: Keith Spencer (Eastlake) 6-2
Pole vault: Steve Nemecek (Chula Vista) 13-6; Joe Ziomek (Eastlake) 13-0
Long jump: Gene Smith (Castle Park) 21-6; Stefan Foster (Montgomery) 20-10
Triple jump: Jordan Rosure (Sweetwater) 45-7.5; Gene Smith (Castle Park) 43-1
Shot put: Russ Foster (Bonita Vista) 54-10; Fred Smith (Southwest) 52-3
Discus: Don Bonahoom (Eastlake) 165-6; Kevin Baer (Eastlake) 145-0; Steve Nemecek (Chula Vista) 144-5; Russ Foster (Bonita Vista) 144-4

Note: Rankings are based on reported results.